STREET. PETERSBURG, Florida. – There will be two new faces Saint Peter City Council after Tuesday’s elections.

Corey Givens, Jr. and Mike Harting will be sworn in as council members in January.

They will have to guide the city through recovery from two of the most devastating storms the city has ever seen.

READ: St. Pete parks damaged, nearly a dozen playgrounds remain closed after hurricanes

Both are lifelong residents of St. Pete and would never have imagined they would join the council at such a critical time.

“You know, for most of us, we’ve never experienced a natural disaster like this. This is a learning curve for many of us. It’s going to take us rolling up our sleeves and literally getting our hands dirty and putting on some work we may have to do. We need to realign some priorities and shift some dollars in our budget to really address our needs and not necessarily address our wants,” said Givens, a financial planner and minister.

FOX 13 spoke with him at the recreation center at the playground where he grew up and went for care after school.

Corey Givens, Jr., will be sworn in as a member of the St. Pete City Council in January.

“For too long, the community I represent has felt ignored,” he said.

Harting, owner of Three Daughters Brewing, laid out a platform on how to address infrastructure, which is likely to be even more critical after Helen and Milton.

“After this type of devastating traumatic episode, I think you’ll clearly start to see the city return to our core competencies,” he said.

Mike Harting will be sworn in as a member of the St. Pete City Council in January.

It’s focused on the budget, after the storm.

“How can we look differently at this pile of money we call the budget and refocus priorities to make sure that if this storm hits next year or five years from now, we’re much better prepared for it?” he said.

We also asked them both if they think the city should pay to repair Tropicana Field.

Drone footage of unroofed Tropicana Field after Hurricane Milton.

Harting said he will need to see more information.

“Can they revive the Trop? And if they can, what is the associated cost? And once that cost is calculated, how much of that will come from insurance? And how much should come from the citizenry? So, “I don’t have a answer. “I hope to learn more about this, but it is complex and emotional,” he said.

FORMER: St. Pete leaders request report on damage to Tropicana Field after Hurricane Milton

On Wednesday, the council voted in favor of a study at the Trop, meaning the final decision could fall to the new council.

“Well, I don’t need a study to tell me what I can see clearly. We’re not blind, common sense will tell you that it doesn’t make sense to keep investing money in this endless pit like Tropicana Field. It’s going to be demolished and rebuilt in no time.” two years, so let’s find another foster home and put that money somewhere else,” Givens said.

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